AphroChic Magazine: Issue No. 4
In this issue, we sit down with artist, Malik Roberts, who relates the experience of creating one of the few African American artworks to sit permanently in the Vatican collection. Fashion designer, Prajjé Oscar John-Baptiste introduces his latest collection — an ode to Haiti, and its goddesses. We head to South Carolina to experience the Gullah-inspired music of Ranky Tanky. And in New York, we watch a new world being born with photographer and journalist, Naeem Douglass, who takes us inside the city’s Black Lives Matter protests, and economist Janelle Jones, who reminds us in these times that we are the economy. We are thrilled to share our cover with chef and musician, Lazarus Lynch. Inside, we talk with him about his cookbook, Son of a Southern Chef and his new album, I’m Gay. From a house tour in Brooklyn to a travel piece in Tobago, this issue takes you all over the Diaspora. And we see how of the concept of Diaspora was first introduced in a look back at how Pan-Africanism led the way to how we think of international Blackness today. It is a showcase of our culture, our creativity, our resilience, and our diversity, our demands for the present and our hopes for the future. Welcome to our summer issue.
In this issue, we sit down with artist, Malik Roberts, who relates the experience of creating one of the few African American artworks to sit permanently in the Vatican collection. Fashion designer, Prajjé Oscar John-Baptiste introduces his latest collection — an ode to Haiti, and its goddesses. We head to South Carolina to experience the Gullah-inspired music of Ranky Tanky. And in New York, we watch a new world being born with photographer and journalist, Naeem Douglass, who takes us inside the city’s Black Lives Matter protests, and economist Janelle Jones, who reminds us in these times that we are the economy.
We are thrilled to share our cover with chef and musician, Lazarus Lynch. Inside, we talk with him about his cookbook, Son of a Southern Chef and his new album, I’m Gay.
From a house tour in Brooklyn to a travel piece in Tobago, this issue takes you all over the Diaspora. And we see how of the concept of Diaspora was first introduced in a look back at how Pan-Africanism led the way to how we think of international Blackness today. It is a showcase of our culture, our creativity, our resilience, and our diversity, our demands for the present and our hopes for the future. Welcome to our summer issue.
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THE REMIX<br />
Sustainability Matters<br />
A house is made up of many rooms. They all have their uses, and we love them all,<br />
but the ones that help us relax, that give us an escape from everything else in the<br />
world, do a little more to make us feel at home. For most of us, the bedroom is where<br />
every day begins and ends. We need it to start us off in the right frame of mind every<br />
morning. And when the day is done we return, looking for the peace of mind that will<br />
let us slip off into a restorative sleep. There’s nowhere else in the home where it’s more<br />
important to create a relaxing feel. So when it’s time for a decorative refresh, there’s<br />
no better place to start.<br />
For the second part of our home<br />
makeover, Bryan and I started looking for<br />
ways to update our bedroom sanctuary. I absolutely<br />
love our bedroom the way it is now.<br />
It’s dark, moody, and laid back. But the one<br />
place where it fails is the bed. It’s time for<br />
something more grown up and solid than the<br />
discount bed we found online when we first<br />
moved in.<br />
Interior design by <strong>AphroChic</strong><br />
Photos by Patrick Cline<br />
Words by Jeanine Hays<br />
It isn’t easy to update a room you already<br />
love. But there’s always room for improvement.<br />
With so much attention on wellness at<br />
home right now, it’s the perfect time to look<br />
for pieces that make the room healthier, in<br />
addition to looking good. So for this part<br />
of the project, we are focusing on finding<br />
pieces that not only meet our aesthetic needs,<br />
but are sustainable as well. “Sustainability<br />
is something that needs to be talked about<br />
more, especially in Black homes,” Bryan<br />
observed. “Many of the health issues that<br />
Africans Americans suffer disproportionately<br />
from — such as asthma — are linked to<br />
the quality of what we put into our homes.<br />
Things like paint, wallpaper, furniture and<br />
rugs all off-gas — putting chemicals into the<br />
air that we breathe in every day. Reducing<br />
that means looking for pieces made from real<br />
materials with low levels of VOCs. It can take a<br />
bit longer, but it’s worth it.”<br />
For the bedroom, we sat down with<br />
Bernhardt to look at pieces that fit our<br />
lifestyle. We also thought beyond the<br />
furniture, and met with Avocado Green<br />
Mattress, to discuss what we actually lay and<br />
sleep on every night.<br />
When designing a bedroom, people<br />
think about the beds and dressers, of course.<br />
But they forget things like the mattress. We<br />
want something made with organic materials<br />
that’s environmentally friendly. <strong>No</strong>t only will<br />
we be able to rest easy on a good mattress,<br />
but we’ll rest with peace of mind knowing it’s<br />
healthy for us.<br />
Our current bedroom.<br />
<strong>No</strong> matter which bedroom we choose (see the<br />
next page), it was extremely important for us to<br />
select the right mattress. On average, we spend<br />
a third of our life in bed. That’s hundreds of<br />
thousands of hours spent on a mattress. Many<br />
mattresses are made using harmful chemicals that<br />
off-gas nightly while we sleep, contributing to a<br />
multitude of health issues. We’re choosing to work<br />
with Avocado Green Mattress to sleep well on a<br />
product that’s green and sustainable.<br />
(avocadogreenmattress.com)<br />
116 aphrochic issue four 117
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